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Sim Settlements 2 - Chapters 1 & 2, A New Saga, Back to the BoS, Update D.2

Started a new game as the BoS and encountered a small problem which I also observed as a side effect in the previous Minuteman game described above. There is an incompatibility between Chapter 2 and the Nexus mod 30147, SKK Fast BOS (ArcJet triggers Prydwen).
  1. Minuteman Game: after starting this game with both the SKK Fast BoS and the Chapter 2 mods enabled, I disabled the SKK mod before exiting ArcJet, assuming the Prydwen would disappear from the game until the Reunions quest. Upon exiting ArcJet, there was no grand Prydwen entrance, however, later in the game I did observe the Prydwen in the sky over the Boston airport even though I had not started the Reunions quest.
  2. BoS Game: with both mods enabled, the Prydwen did not appear after exiting ArcJet. Reloaded an earlier save, and before "fooling around" with the Vortex load order, I disabled the Chapter 2 mod before exiting ArcJet to talk to Danse, and after the Prydwen arrived enable the Chapter 2 mod. At the moment, this appears to have worked.
 
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Update B.1 - After 60+ hours (includes save reloads), starting from the beginning with the mod Start Me Up (Nexus mod #18946) and using 96 active mods, my current game is still fairly stable and playing reasonably well.

Current
Playing as BoS on survival with extensive micro-management and no city plans except Stodge et al, have:
  1. reached Level 22 [using the mod No Crafting Experience (Nexus mod #15203)],
  2. developed 9 settlements [all with IDEK Logistics stations, clinics, and sanitation plots plus two with hospitals],
  3. changed my playstyle to use console commands to: (a) obtain the necessary crafting materials (after 6+ years, no more hunting/hauling the last plastic spoon) - besides Maxson and I reached a deal - the BoS provides all the raw materials and I do all the work, (b) remove unwanted settlement stuff to create BoS outposts, see images of Sanctuary and Abernathy, and (c) obtain settlers.
  4. completed the game through the second sensor in Picking Up the Pieces with the following Issues/Bugs/Annoyances.
Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. 3 CTDs and no freezes - the reduction in CTDs may be due in part to not building anything at Red Rocket. (In other games, about a third of my CTDs occurred in the "triangle of death." While some were due to my impatience.)
  2. New - approximately one third of the transition/load screens (fast travel, going in/out doors) go "black" with the Fallout icon in the lower right corner. The screen appearance takes longer than normal, however, I have found that using the keyboard Microsoft logo and then activate the game from the task bar expedites the process).
  3. New - after setting up Stodge et al's settlement, upon returning to Jake and restarting the generator, Jake repeated the initial part of the dialogue of him recording the message to his daughter before launching the correct dialogue. Waiting for his full dialogue resulted in the correct dialogue.
  4. New - at each settlement, there is now one settler who has the doctor's dialogue, but is not the settlement's doctor. The actual doctor's dialogue is correct.
  5. Old - settlers leaving their post - old annoyance that still occurs.
Considering the flaws in the vanilla game with the overlaid complexity of all my mods and SS2 Chapters 1 & 2 specifically, I have had surprisingly few problems and no "show stoppers." Again, many thanks to KG and the gang.)
 

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Update B.2 - After 40+ hours (includes save reloads and excludes #6 below), have:
  1. completed the SS2 quests through Hostile Takeover, the CPD quests through Collecting Publications Detail, and the Nightengale quests through Sunken Treasure with no problems
  2. reached Level 29 [using the mod No Crafting Experience (Nexus mod #15203)],
  3. developed 12 settlements [all with IDEK Logistics stations, clinics, and sanitation plots plus two with hospitals],
My current game is still fairly stable and playing reasonably well with some of the problems I experienced in the Minutemen game above. There was one Issue/Bug/Annoyance as described in #6 that consumed some time to try and fix/find a workaround.

Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. two CTDs and one freeze
  2. Continuing - approximately one third of the transition/load screens (fast travel, going in/out doors) go "black" with the Fallout icon in the lower right corner.
  3. Stopped - now only the settlement doctors have the correct dialogue.
  4. Old - settlers leaving their posts - old annoyance that still occurs, but it appears to occur less frequently. Maybe due to significantly "higher" happiness?
  5. Very Old - settlers spawn on the "ground" inside a terraform or concrete foundation block or inside the plot's wood stilt foundation.
  6. New/Unique - Never Occurred Before - To control my settlement builds, I am using the console command, player.placeatme 20593 1, to spawn one settler at a time and then assign them to specific work and associated recreation plots. I have used this technique to populate 11 settlements (excluding Theresa's settlement), each with 11 to 16 settlers and there have been no problems. At Oberland, I spawned the first 8 settlers with no problem, but could not spawn/assign the 9th settler. The following repeatedly occurred: (1) used the console command to spawn the settler, (2) in Workshop mode, tried to "Move/Send Settler to" but Oberland was not included in the settlement list, (3) the settler was already listed as being an Oberland settler, but could not be assigned to a plot and (4) shortly thereafter disappeared. After the 8th settler, the Town Meeting Gavel did not work at Oberland. To find a fix/work-around tried the following unsuccessfully: (1) shutdown/restarted my PC; (2) Steam verified FO4 files; (3) shutdown/restarted Vortex/Fallout 4; (4) disabled/enabled SS2, Chapter 2 and WSFW; (5) fast travelled to Egret and tried to send a settler to Oberland - again Oberland was not on the list; (6) reloaded an earlier save including checking Town Meeting Gavel and assignment from Egret to Oberland; and (7) waited for "scripts" to catch-up. Finally, decided to leave Oberland at 8 settlers and continue playing with a return visit later.
Observations
Walls - In other threads, the value of settlement walls has been discussed, so here is my $.02. In the two SS2 Chapters 1/2 games described in this thread, I have had the following defensive situations (best memory):
  1. Ten Pines - all the assaults have come from outside the walls except for the one synth saboteur,
  2. Red Rocket - all the assaults came from outside the walls,
  3. Sunshine - all the assaults came from outside the walls,
  4. Abernathy - mixed bag, usually the assault comes from outside,
  5. Taffington - all the assaults come from within the walls,
  6. County - mixed bag about 75% of the assault force is outside the wall,
  7. Egret - all the assaults came from within the walls.
Below are images from my SS2/BoS game last year - showing the staging point for assaults on County by raiders, Gunners and ghouls; and an assault on Starlite by synths, see thread https://simsettlements.com/site/ind...-vertibird-plus-a-question.18057/#post-122513

If KG et all incorporate the Conqueror mechanics into Chapter 3 then the assault staging points (to the best of my memory) will be outside the settlement. In Conqueror, this mechanic along with the Personal Guard's behavior was a significant improvement over the vanilla game.

My primary annoyance was the defenders behavior. They would run into/shoot the walls, and/or get trapped in plots or stilt foundation.

PS: I am long-winded and can't resist, so how did I finally deal with County being lost to the hordes in this case - Gunners. With the mod Boston Airport Redux (Nexus mod 46022), I lured the Gunners into following me where the BoS at the airport responded, see images.
 

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To control my settlement builds, I am using the console command, player.placeatme 20593 1, to spawn one settler at a time and then assign them to specific work and associated recreation plots.
Just a little hint for you here; there's another console command hidden in SS2, cqf ss2_npc_recruitmentmanager settlers X which when run within a settlement's "build zone" will spawn X settlers for you and have them auto-joined to the settlement you're currently in.
secret bonus round: this even works in HQ
 
Just a little hint for you here; there's another console command hidden in SS2, cqf ss2_npc_recruitmentmanager settlers X which when run within a settlement's "build zone" will spawn X settlers for you and have them auto-joined to the settlement you're currently in.
secret bonus round: this even works in HQ
Thanks - I will try it. What I did not emphasize, but also repeatedly occurred was - the Town Meeting Gavel also stopped working at the same time.
 
Thanks - I will try it. What I did not emphasize, but also repeatedly occurred was - the Town Meeting Gavel also stopped working at the same time.
I've never seen that one, outside of a long standing glitch with any of those "scripted infinite-use technically an AID class item" things (other mods use that trick too) where it gets 'eaten' but doesn't do anything. Was that what it was doing for you, or something else?
 
Was that what it was doing for you, or something else?
I tried six to eight times/reloads to find a work-around, and each time settler # 9 would shortly disappear after spawning. Ok - they could be on the ground below the concrete/terraform/plot block surface, so I used the Town Meeting Gavel to summon all the settlers and each time, no one showed up.
 
I tried six to eight times/reloads to find a work-around, and each time settler # 9 would shortly disappear after spawning. Ok - they could be on the ground below the concrete/terraform/plot block surface, so I used the Town Meeting Gavel to summon all the settlers and each time, no one showed up.
Hm, yeah, never seen that one before. No idea, sorry.
 
Update B.3 - After 20+ hours (includes save reloads), have:
  1. started the SS2 quest How to HQ, completed the CPD quests through Conquering Principle Dwelling, and completed the Nightengale quests through New Connections with fewer problems than the Minutemen game
  2. reached Level 37 [using the mod No Crafting Experience (Nexus mod #15203)],
  3. developed 15 settlements [all with IDEK Logistics stations, clinics, and sanitation plots plus two with hospitals],
My current game is still fairly stable and playing reasonably well with fewer issues than the Minutemen game above, but with one new interesting issue, see #2 below.

Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. no CTDs or freezes.
  2. New - attempted to populate GNN HQ with robots - this did not work. Crafted 2 savant strength robots and two savant endurance robots and sent them to GNN. Three problems occurred: (1) from first crafting the robots to their departure, their dialogue was inconsistent and took a considerable amount of time to send them to GNN, (2) the GNN total population level was inaccurate - it stated 9 when there were 10 (6 uniques plus 4 crafted robots/also verified arrival of the four robots), and (3) the GNN workshop mode manage population listing always showed 3 or 4 more robots than present. After several attempts to fix/work-around, went back to npc staffing.
  3. New - in the Peace of Mind quest, Theresa was tied-up, but all the other settlers were walking around.
  4. Continuing - approximately one third of the transition/load screens (fast travel, going in/out doors) go "black" with the Fallout icon in the lower right corner.
  5. Did Not Occur - the raiders did not appear in the BATDFL as occurred in the previous Minutemen game after the CPD quest Conquering Principle Dwelling.
  6. New/More or Less - the Prydwen appeared as undiscovered after starting War Is Good For Business, but there was no change to my status with the BoS.
  7. Old - power armor still disappears in the GNN players room.
  8. Old - settlers leaving their posts - old annoyance that still occurs, but it appears to occur less frequently.
  9. Very Old - settlers spawn on the "ground" inside a terraform or concrete foundation block or inside the plot's wood stilt foundation.
Observations
  1. Walls - three gunner attacks (Taffington, Starlight, and Red Rocket) all outside the wall.
  2. While it is difficult to "teach an old dog new tricks" - it is possible. I play lore lite - Minutemen have artillery and BoS has vertibirds. After entering the Castle grounds and dispatching some of the Mirelurks/hatchlings, awaited the roar and appearance of the Queen. Awaiting her arrival, my chief concerns were (a) Ada not standing in front of me and asking about "never lost anyone" etc while getting doused with poison or (b) commanding Ada to attack the Queen at a distance and not just inspect. Waited and waited - no Queen. However, my personal vertibird was flying high cover and in combat. So cautiously approaching the breach, I observed the Queen being "chased" around the lagoon by the vertibird. So watched the show until the vertibird had dispatched her. Should have tried this 2 years ago, but better late then never. :pilot
 
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Update B.3a

Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. New - Fiona's dialogue/cut scene initiation distance may be too close. Several times, her dialogue started correctly, but I could walk away without initiating the cut scene and ending her dialogue. If I am "in her face", the dialogue/cut scene proceeds as expected.
  2. New - In my previous Minutemen game, I had activated 2 relay towers before the How to HQ quest and while in the field, Jake recognized this. However, in the current game, I activated 1 relay tower before the quest, and while in the field, Jake did not recognize this.
  3. New - during Angel of Mercy while in the Mass Bay Medical Center, the bed noted - Your Bed (Owned), but was red.
 
Update B.4 - After 20+ hours (includes save reloads), have:
  1. completed the SS2 quest How to HQ and completed the Nightengale quests through Angel of Mercy, but again had issues with the CPD Catastrophe Prevention Drive quest.
  2. reached Level 43 [using the mod No Crafting Experience (Nexus mod #15203)],
  3. developed 21 settlements [all with IDEK Logistics stations, clinics, and sanitation plots plus three with hospitals],
My current game is still fairly stable and playing reasonably well with fewer issues than the Minutemen game above.

Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. one CTD and no freezes.
  2. Continuing Issue with the console command/settlement listing, player.placeatme 20593 1 - after 3 to 4 game days and numerous save reloads the command/settlement list is now working at Egret, but there was an issue at Coastal. After adding the first two settlers to Coastal, the command/settlement listing did not show Coastal for the third settler, however, thanks to @yaugie I was able to continue by using the command cqf ss2_npc_recruitmentmanager settlers X.
  3. Continuing Issues with the CPD Catastrophe Prevention Drive quest - the following issues occurred: (a) met Simon and proceeded to the Hellhound base where the Hellhound on the upper deck just stood there; (b) while traveling to the BADFTL, observed Patty and Pete standing in the same location as previously noted; (c) upon approaching the rendezvous, there was a shoot-out between Simon/CPD and Rust Devils with no Gunner response and then a shootout between Gunners and raiders; (d) the surviving Gunners did not respond to my approach; and (d) once inside Simon attacked me. Tried three times - (1) Simon and Ada had a shootout after entering the BADFTL; (2) left Ada outside and was able to open the door to the file room where the Gunners and raiders were in a shootout and then Simon starting shooting me; and (3) rushed into the file room and participated in the gunner/raider shootout and made it to the jail cells when Simon started shooting me. Reloaded an earlier save and will try this quest again later.
 
Update B.5 - After 40+ hours (includes save reloads), have:
  1. continued HQ room construction, now with two issues that limit my game to constructing/upgrading only select rooms (for example, power, water, HVAC, armory and treasury), as noted below
  2. reached Level 47 [using the mod No Crafting Experience (Nexus mod #15203)],
  3. developed 22 settlements [all with IDEK Logistics stations, clinics, and sanitation plots plus three with hospitals],
My current game is still fairly stable and playing reasonably well, except as noted below.

Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. three CTDs and two freezes.
  2. New HQ issue - can not move staff between departments, see https://simsettlements.com/site/index.php?threads/hq-staffing-slightly-confused.23444/
  3. New HQ issue - can not build additional living space, see https://simsettlements.com/site/index.php?threads/three-presumably-minor-issues.23413/
 
While waiting for KG and his merry men/women :grin to address some of the issues with the HQs, started a new game as the Institute and have had surprisingly few issues. After 40+ hours (includes save reloads):
  1. reached Level 16 using the mod No Crafting Experience (Nexus mod #15203)
  2. started near Vault 111 as a scientist using the mod Start Me Up (Nexus mod #18946)
  3. before Codsworth's or Jake's quests, completed Institutionalized using the mod Instant Institute Access (Nexus mod #37958)
  4. after saving Ada, populated three settlements with synths using the mod Build Synth Automatrons (Nexus mod #27829) - Sanctuary (Codsworth, Lily, Old Paul, 6 npc settlers and 4 synths), Abernathy (Blake, Connie, Lucy and 10 synths) and Starlight (13 synths)
  5. completed the SS2 quests through Well Well Well
Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. no CTDs and one freeze with no Red Rocket development
  2. at each settlement, one character had dual jobs which had to be tracked down/corrected
Observations
  1. For me, each faction has a different settlement build style. My "headcanon" (thanks @yaugie) for the Institute is a compact concrete vertical style. My first settlement defense was Abernathy where 9 raider spawned "inside the wall", but there was no wall, see image (Oops! - image is Starlight). Before I engaged, I watched 4 heavy mgs attack the raiders. But where were Blake, Connie and Lucy? After defeating the raiders, I found all three asleep in their beds on the third level.
  2. Synths will automatically build every plot type except residential.
Questions to be Answered
  1. If synths do not need beds and do not build residential plots, how will this effect the settlement's total cap income?
  2. Will HQs accept synths?
  3. If I have a mixed settlement or pure synth settlement, will synths from a relay grenade attack my settlers?
PS: an image of a properly "decked-out" synth. Tried to use white synth armor, but could not find a quick convenient method of adding the Institute logo to the chest piece, so tried black combat which worked.
 

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Update C.1 - After another 20+ hours (includes save reloads), the Institute game continues to play surprisingly well and have:
  1. reached Level 24 with the mod No Crafting Experience (Nexus mod #15203)
  2. populated eight settlements mainly with synths using the mod Build Synth Automatrons (Nexus mod #27829) - Sanctuary (Codsworth, Lily, Old Paul, 6 npc settlers and 4 synths), Abernathy (Blake, Connie, Lucy and 10 synths) Starlight (13 synths), Croup (13 synths), Oberland (2 npc settlers and 11 synths), County (2 npc settlers and 11 synths), Sunshine (13 synths) and Taffington (13 synths).
  3. completed the SS2 quests through Where There's Smoke and the Institute quest through Synth Retention.
Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. no CTDs and no freezes with no Red Rocket development
  2. minor issue in the Where There's Smoke quest - the Legendary mod Deadeye that slows time, caused my response to freeze to Jake's request for help in responding to Aiden. Reloaded an earlier save and activated a different weapon and got the same freeze. Reloaded an even earlier save and removed the mod from any weapon and that fixed the issue.
Observations
  1. On the plus side, synths do not get diseases, so when I enter a settlement, half of the settlers are not scratching themselves.
  2. Institute supplied synth relay grenades were of no help (Gen 1) in the Where There's Smoke quest which lead me to another mod Better Synth Relay Grenades (Nexus #6485) which provides serious synth support.
 
Update C.1.a - Passing observation - Ada plus six Synth Generation 3s were sufficient to "take-out" The Castle Queen. Ada was down and only two synths survived, but I got to watch from the ground floor.
 
Update C.2 - After another 20+ hours (includes save reloads), the Institute game continues to play surprisingly well and have:
  1. reached Level 31 with the mod No Crafting Experience (Nexus mod #15203)
  2. populated 12 settlements mainly with synths using the mod Build Synth Automatrons with Red Rocket empty, and Stodge and the gang at Hangman.
  3. completed SS2 Chapter 1, but before starting Chapter 2 installed the public beta of the 2.2.0 patch,
  4. completed the SS2 Chapter 2 quests through Dark Horizons and the Institute quests through Mankind Redefined and House Divided.
Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. no CTDs and no freezes with no Red Rocket development
  2. minor issue in the Dark Horizons quest - after leaving Malden to return to the hardware store, the Museum was listed as undiscovered on my Pipboy. Fast travelled to Concord and walked to the hardware store and it was discovered again.
Observations
  1. On the positive side, an issue could have, but did not occur. Upon arriving at the hardware store, a shootout between robots including a legendary tankbot and the Gunners started. After assisting the Gunners, began the dialogue with the Gunner squad leader and "boom". Three BoS Power Armored knights dropped-in which started another shootout with the Gunners, before the dialogue was completed. Ada, Jake and I watched this one. The shootout ended with the Gunner Leader down and the remaining Gunners eliminated. Shortly thereafter the Gunner Leader got up and no one shot him. With the BoS standing around, started and completed the dialogue with the Gunner Leader.
 
minor issue in the Dark Horizons quest - after leaving Malden to return to the hardware store, the Museum was listed as undiscovered on my Pipboy. Fast travelled to Concord and walked to the hardware store and it was discovered again.
Concord Museum being "undiscovered" for this quest is intentional, it's not a bug. Has to do with setting up the scene for Dark Horizons IIRC. Not a bug.

I love how random encounters can make for interesting, sometimes exciting combat events. Good to hear that the quest was able to continue.
 
Update C.3 - After another 20+ hours (includes save reloads), my game 3, The Institute, continues to play surprisingly well and have:
  1. reached Level 37 with the mod No Crafting Experience,
  2. populated 16 settlements mainly with synths using the mod Build Synth Automatrons with Red Rocket empty, and Stodge and the gang at Hangman.
  3. installed Beta 2.2.0 v13 and completed Chapter 2 quests through Moving Day.
Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. one CTD and no freezes with no Red Rocket development
Observations
  1. For the End of the Beginning quest, The Institute was my only ally plus used the Better Synth Relay Grenades mod (Nexus #6485) to teleport in 11 Gen 3 synths of which 9 synths were lost.
  2. Synths do not automatically build residential and recreational plots, and settlement happiness is not dependent on covered beds for synths.
 
Update C.4 - After another 20+ hours (includes save reloads), my game 3, as The Institute, with Beta v14 continues to play reasonable well and:
  1. installed Beta 2.2.0 v14
  2. had 3 CTDs, two of which were teleporting/fast travel from the Institute to the Castle - no obvious connection to the Beta v14
  3. reached Level 39 with the mod No Crafting Experience,
  4. populated 20 settlements mainly with synths using the mod Build Synth Automatrons with Red Rocket empty, and Stodge and the gang at Hangman.
  5. have 12/15 settlers staff at HQ for the How to HQ quest
  6. built a Power Distribution Room and have 460 /1000 Engineering for the Commonwealth Rising quest
Issues/Bugs/Annoyances
  1. Vitomatic/Special Zapper - as discussed in other threads/comments (thanks to @yaugie), the distance for using the Vitomatic on a synth/robot is very close and precise. However, playing as the Institute and populating HQ with synths, the Vitomatic is not needed and using the Special Zapper (Nexus mod #57139) works well for upgrading the SPECIAL stats for the synths (headcanon - software upgrade versus Recreational plot training). The only limitation is - the Zapper does not work in the HQ.
  2. Invisible Power Armor - as discussed in other threads/comments (thanks to @GuardianMF), this is a vanilla feature issue and can be "fixed" by removing the Power Armory outside the room.
Observations
  1. HQ Population Stats - after reloading an earlier save and installing Beta v14, the HQ population stats are now accurate.
 
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